Sanborn: Passion leads to business venture

A love of antiquing and an abundance of
those treasures led Ernie and Debbie McPeek to the opening of the Lewiston
Antique Mall in Sanborn.

For the past two years the McPeek's have
been leasing space at the Schultz's Antique Cooperative in Clarence.

"It was successful and we decided to open
a shop," Debbie said.

"We chose the Town of Lewiston because
it's known for its culture and cultural events. Antiques fit in nicely," said
Ernie.

The Sanborn site lends itself to even more
opportunity with the heavy traffic on Route 31, the proximity to the
Canadian/U.S. border, and the other antique venues in the area make it a
destination for antique hunters.

"I spent a lot of time in Lewiston and
this is a friendly community," Ernie said.

"Every time we had something that needed
to be done, a helping hand came over," Debbie said. "This is a great little
community."

"People we didn't even know were here to
help," she continued.

Locals will remember the property as that
owned by the Wendt family, and the building that now houses priceless
treasurers was home to tractors, trucks and tools.

The McPeek's will feature antiques,
collectibles and vintage items in their shop. They are ready to fill the
building with more than 30 vendors who will have a choice of size for their
area.

While many see eBay, Craig's List, Amazon
and other Web-based sites as taking from the physical shops, the McPeek's don't
agree.

"People like to feel and touch things.
They want to look at something, walk away and then come back," Ernie said.
"It's the fun of 'picking' and finding unique things that make this work.

"When we go picking, we look for things we
think people back here will enjoy."

"It's fun to find something we really
like, bring it back and see other people like it as much as we did," Debbie
said.

In Sanborn, "pickers" can go from the
Lewiston Antique Mall, to the Sanborn Mill, General Store and Shawnee Antique
Barn, among others that can be found all over Niagara County.

"You come in here and if we don't have
something, we'll refer you to another shop and those shops will refer customers
here," Ernie said. "It's a community within a community."

"We looked for a place that had a cluster
of shops and Sanborn was the ideal location," Debbie said.

Not only will the Lewiston Antique Mall be
open every day, except Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the McPeek's will hold a
Lewiston Outdoor Market on Saturdays and Sundays where anyone can purchase a
table for $10 per day and sell their antiques, collectibles, vintage and
miscellaneous items. They also plan to have local farmers sell produce.

"Once a month we will have an appraiser
here and you will be able to bring in your own antiques for appraisal," said
Ernie, who added they will be setting dates and times for that shortly.

They will also maintain a wish list for
customers.

"If someone comes in and they are looking
for something specific, we will write it down and when we go picking we'll look
for that item," Debbie said. "We want to be customer-friendly."

Only open two weeks, they have had
visitors from Canada and a gentleman from Germany.

"This is a great location; we welcome
everyone," Ernie said. "We want it to be an enjoyable experience.

The Lewiston Antique Mall is located at
2692 Saunders Settlement Road, Sanborn, in the Town of Lewiston.

The McPeeks are still seeking vendors who
want to bring their merchandise to Sanborn.